Like It Never Happened
by C.K.isback
Summary: Katniss always said that she and Gale were just friends. But Katniss said a lot of things that weren't true. Perhaps she had just forgotten that one rainy night at the Hawthorne house...  One-shot


**Be warned. This is the fluffiest thing I've ever written. It might be OOC (I avoid this problem by writing about less developed characters, if you haven't caught that yet). Please review if you read it all the way through. It means a lot to me, and boosts my ego in ways that you cannot imagine.**

**Disclaimer: No. Just...no.**

She is beautiful.

Even then, Gale knows this. Even before he has realized how incredibly special she is. Even before he realizes he is in love with her.

Of course, everyone knows this, except for Katniss herself. Sure, she is a Seam girl, but she is healthy and strong, and carries herself in a manner that hints to much more under the surface. She has the walk of a girl you'd want to get to know.

Gale tries not to think about the way she looks. In the beginning, he often had to remind himself that they were just hunting partners. Now it is easier, but he still constantly runs the line _just friends_ over and over in his head.

She is looking especially pretty today - her hair is not tied back in its usual braid, but in a low ponytail, a blue velvet ribbon the color of the early night sky securing her hair. Her cheeks are rosy and eyes bright. She is dressed in her usual hunting outfit, a quiver of arrows slung over her back and a hunting knife stuck in her pocket.

After a few moments of walking, Gale plucks up enough nerve to ask. "What's with the ribbon?"

Katniss blushes out of embarrassment, but tries to cover it up with a short laugh. "Prim is insisting on making everyone "pretty." If you think this is bad, you should see Buttercup."

Gale smiles. "I don't think you look bad. It's pretty."

She has to hide her face in her coat to conceal an even deeper blush. "Mm-hm."

They have shot two squirrels and collected at least a gallon of blackberries before it starts to rain. Little drops prick at their skin, feeling like icy beestings. They both put the hoods of their coats up to shield there faces.

Gale curses under his breath as he looked up at the sky. It is an angry looking purplish-grey. "I should've seen it coming."

Katniss glances worriedly in the direction of the fence. "We should start heading back, before it gets too bad. We're at least two miles away."

Gale agrees and clips the squirrels onto his belt, trying his best to cover them with his jacket so that they wouldn't get wet. Rory always complains whenever he brings back soggy things, since he is the one who has to skin them.

Katniss hikes the jug of berries farther up into her arms. "If the weather clears up, let's go over to the Hob and see if we can sell any of this."

Gale shakes his head. "This is bad storm; It's not going to clear up anytime soon."

Katniss looks up to the sky for a moment, shielding her eyes from the chilling drops that were falling much faster now. "You think so? Prim hates storms. For some reason, she thinks the house is going to blow away."

Gale grins. "Well, if you're going to be blown away, at least she'll be able to play more dress up with you."

"Drop it," Katniss growls, touching the ribbon in her hair self consciously.

"You might want to take that out," Gale says.

"Why?" Her face darkens even more. Her knuckles go white as she clutches the berry jug hard.

Gale laughs at her expression. "Nice ribbons like that wrinkle whenever they get wet. Mother gets awfully mad when Posy goes out in the rain with them on."

Her face smoothes out, and she nods, trying to yank out the ribbon. The bow comes undone, but slides into a knot around her dark hair, pinching it.

"Ouch!" she yelps, dropping the jug of berries onto the wet forest floor. Thankfully, they don't spill.

"You want me to do it?" Gale asks, already putting his fingers into her hair. It is smooth, and his fingers slide through it effortlessly. "I don't know if you know this, but I'm pretty good with knots."

Katniss rolls her eyes and gives a small smile, allowing him to slowly work his long fingers through her hair. She closes her eyes.

"You okay?" Gale asks.

She sighs, glancing up at him. "It…feels nice." She bites her lip and looks away.

Gale smiles wide, and with a final tug, undoes the knot. He glances down at the twisted ribbon in the palm of his hand, fragile and delicate, so unlike the girl who was wearing it. With a seconds hesitation, he pockets it.

The rain is coming down hard now, icy buckets dumping onto them and their flimsy jackets. Gale tugs the color of his coat up to his ears, hiding his face in its warmth. The air is much colder, and a bitter wind has picked up.

"We need to get home now!" Katniss yells over the wind. Her hair waiss whipping freely around her face, slapping her cheeks and getting in her eyes.

Gale nods, then yells, "Follow me!" He then takes off in a fast walk toward the fence, which is just visible. He climbs over it with a little difficulty, clunky hunting boots slipping on the wet metal, but is able to drop to the squishy mud on the side that is District Twelve. He shivers in the chill, then takes off for his house. Katniss walks beside him, leaning against him for warmth.

When they get to his house, they are met with emptiness. Except for the relentless rain pounding it, the house is quiet. No children race around the floor, no fire is roaring in the fireplace, and there are no smells of dinner coming from the kitchen.

"Where is everyone?" Katniss asks. Her voice feels oddly loud after yelling in the roaring storm outside.

For a second, Gale is also bewildered. Then he remembers. "They all went down to the Sheers' for dinner. I remember them talking about it." He looks around at the deserted house once more. "I guess they didn't expect me to join them. Maybe I should -"

"No," Katniss says. "Let's just have a Gale and Katniss night. No little kids, no moms, no noise." She grins. "Besides, I'm freezing. I'm not going home until you kick me out."

Gale laughed. "You know I would never kick you out, Catnip," he says. "I wouldn't be able to live with myself, thinking of you out there in the cold…all alone…with the storm ghosts…"

Katniss gives a snort. "Storm ghosts? Really, Gale? Please don't tell Prim that, though. she'll get even more freaked out."

Gale laughs, but shivers again, his wet clothes feeling like they weigh a ton. He tries to unstick his shirt from his skin. "I'm going to go change," he says. "You can wear some of my mom's stuff, if you want."

Katniss looks ready to protest, but Gale is already heading to the bedroom, pulling out clothes for her. "Here," he says. "Go change in the bathroom."

She gives him a long look, holding her mouth in a thin line, before stomping off to the bathroom. Gale chuckles, then takes out clothes of his own. It is extremely comfortable to feel clean, warm clothes on his skin.

Katniss shuffles out of the bathroom in Gale's mother's oldest pair of work pants and a button down shirt. They cling to her loosely, but she looks happy to be out of her wet clothes too.

"I'm going to start a fire," Gale says, already taking a few of the logs piled beside the hearth and setting them in the fireplace.

Katniss nods, crouching next to him. She yawns. "I'm too tired to make anything. Let's just eat the blackberries." She grabs the jug and opens it.

Gale laughs, nodding. "Deifnitley."

And so they crouch by the fire and eat blackberries until their stomachs hurt, chatting easily about nothing of real importance. It is a nice change for Gale, who was used to only talking about what would be on the table next meal, or who needed new shoes, or how they would bring in more money.

Gale sits close to the roaring fire, enjoying the feel of blazing heat radiating from the fire and onto his body. He remembers the ribbon that was still in his pocket, and takes it out.

"Here," he says. "Put this back in your hair."

Katniss rolls her eyes, brushing the ribbon away. "I only wore that to humor Prim."

"No," Gale insists. "It looked pretty."

Katniss' mouth quirks up in a half smile. "You think I looked pretty Gale?"

"No," he said, grinning. "I thought you looked extremely pretty." He smoothes out the wrinkles in the ribbon. "Let me put it in."

She looks ready to protest, but obliges, turning so that he could tie it.

He fumbles for a minute with her hair, but finally manages to wrap the ribbon around it. The tips of his fingers brush her exposed neck. Katniss shivers, though she is still very close to the fire.

"Thanks," she murmurs, twirling her long black ponytail around her finger and staring into the fire.

Gale fingers feel warm where they touched her neck, and his face is flushed. He too stares at the fire. "No problem, Catnip." He moves a little closer, putting a hand on her back.

She looks up sharply at his touch. "Are you okay, Gale?," she asks concern in her voice. "You look flushed." She reaches out and places a hand on his forehead.

He gulps, then shakes his head, eyes still fixed on her face. "Maybe it's a cold…" his voice wanders as he stares in her eyes. Each reflect tiny fires, turning her eyes into flickering flames themselves. Shadows dance across her face, and her eyelashes cast long shadows on her cheeks.

"Katniss…" he whispers, and suddenly his mouth is on hers, at first soft, then hard. He has wanted this so long, has waited anxiously just for this moment. He tastes blackberries on her lips, and his fingers knot themselves in her long, soft hair. She kisses him back with the same amount of excitement.

But, slowly, her mouth grows stiff on his, and she breaks apart. Gale's hands fall to the floor.

Fire still reflects in her eyes, but shock is there also. Slowly, she moves farther away, her breath coming in a long sigh. Her eyes fall to the floor.

And then the five words that break Gale's heart: "We shouldn't have done that." Katniss looks at him anxiously after she says it, gauging his reaction.

Gale feels emotionless, and tries to keep his face a mask, hard as stone. His mind, though, is racing faster than it ever had before. With a deep sigh, he moves away too. "You're…you're right," he mutters.

"Just friends," she says, his words convincing her. She nods firmly. "Just friends."

Gale forces himself to laugh. "What would our parents think?"

Katniss laughs back, relieved. "They would freak out." She looks at him, gaze softening. "Let's just…pretend like it never happened," she says.

He nods stiffly, though his mind is screaming _No! No! No! _"Like it never happened," he repeats, then tries his best to keep the conversation going. Within a few minutes, they are back to talking like friends, though both their minds still linger on the moment before.

_Like it never happened, they tell themselves._


End file.
